Method and apparatus for cutting x b blanks from sheet material



Feb. s, 1927. 1,616,752

F. j. MacDoNALD ME'II'HOD AND APPARATUS FOR CUTTING BLANKS FROM SHEET MA'IERIALr Filed Feb, 17, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet l I fn ven/fof" F. J. MaCDONALD METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CUTTING BLANKS FROM SHEET MATERIAL Feb. 8 1927.

Filed Feb. 17, 1.923

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented F eb. 8, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK J'. MACDONALD, OF AKRON, OHIO, ASSEGNGR TO THE B. F. GOODRICI-I COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATON OF NEW YORK.

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CUTTING BLANXS FROM SHEET MATERIAL.

Application filed February 17, 1923. Serial Ne. 619,595.

This invention relates generally to methods and apparatus for cutting blanks from sheet material, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for cutting simultaneously a plurality of such blanks, being especially applicable to cutting blanks for rubber shoe parts from thin sheets of unvulca-nized rubber, wherein the natural tackiness and the flimsy structure of the material make the manual handling thereof difficult.

The chief object of this invention is tov eliminate the manual handling of the blanks after they are cut from the sheet. Another object is simultaneously to cut a plurality of blanks, expeditiously and with a minimum of waste.

Of the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of apparatus Iembodying and adapted to carry out my invention. s

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of part of the piston 12, to the outer end of which is se-' cured a carriage 13, which rides upon a` presser roller 14 journaled in its frame, said carriage carrying a superposed weighting member 15. The cylinder 11 is provided with a pressure-fluid supply pipe 16, having branches 16, 16b running to the respective ends of the cylinder, the branch pipes being provided respectively with manually-operated three-way valves 17, 18. The front end of the cylinder 11 is loosely attached to the table 10, as by the untightened bolts 19, 19, so that the cylinder may pivot on its rear mounting and accommodate itself to the position of the roller 14, which is required to operate over an uneven surface, the angular movement of the cylinder being so small that I have not found it necessary to provide a hinge or pivot, strictly speaking, at the rear end of the cylinder. y

The end portion of the tabl-e 10 opposite the cylinder 11 comprises a. horizontal metallic plate 2O having suitably positioned apertures 21, 21 therethrough, and having formed on its under surface a fluid tight chamber 22 in communication with all of said apertures. A. pipe line 23 provided with a three-way valve 24 having an inlet port 24 communieating with the atmosphere, connects said chan'iber with suction-producing apparatus (not shown).

Hinged at 25, 25 on the plate 2O is a die plate 26 which comprises a metal plate having openings 27 which conform to the shape of the blanksto be cut, the edge of each opening being provided with a circumscribing knife 23 projecting perpendicularly therefrom. The arrangement of the openings 27 is such that the minimum of space is left between adjacent openings. The dieplate 26, when in operative position, overlies part of the plate 20 with each of its openings 27 overlying a set of the apertures 2l therein, and with its knives 28 having their cutting edges uppermost, as shown in F ig. 5. Being hinged at one edge, the die-plate may be swung out of operative position and caused to lie inverted with its dies facing downward, in a flat tray 29 supported by brackets 30, 30, at the end of the plate 2t). The bottom of the tray 29 is covered with a felt mat 3l which is kept saturated. with water, thus being adapted to wet the knives 28 to lubricate them before each cutting operation.

Mounted on the floor behind the plate 2() are a pair of vertical supports, one being shown at 32 in Fig. 2, said sup orts being provided with lower and upper rackets 33 and 34 respectively. The brackets 33 support between them a roll 35 of sheeted un vulcanized rubber 36' interwound with a fabric liner 37. The brackets 34 support a roller 38 adapted to receive and wind up the liner 37 as said liner` and rubber sheet 36 are withdrawn from the roll 35, said rubber sheet passing over and frictionally driving the roller 38 as it is manually drawn across the plate 20 prior to being cut.

Depending from the plate 20 is an open metal frame 39, adapted to support therein a stock book, such as is used for storing presser roller beingin Iits retracted position,

shown in full lines in F ig, 1, and the dieplate 26 restingmin thetray 29, a leaf 42 of the stock book is spread upon ,the apertured or foraminous plate 20, covering all ofthe apertures therein. The die-plate 26 is then swung from the moistening tray into its op erative position, lwhere it rests upon the book leaf 42, with its knives projecting upward. Then the unvulcanized rubber sheet 36 is drawn across the plate 20 until it completely covers the die-plate 26, as is clearly shown in Fig. 4. The valve 24 is then operated to close its inlet 'port and permit suction to bekapplied, through Ithe chamber-.22

apertures 21, and book leaf 42, to the under surface of the sheet 36, the atmospheric pres.

sure upon the upper surface of the sheet 36y pressing it down against the book leaf 42 within the openings 27, as shown in Fig. 5.

The valve 18 is then opened to admit pressure fluid to the rear end lof the cylinder 11 to force itspiston outward and move the presser roller 14 across the die-plate 26 to the position shown in broken lines in- Fig.

1, thus forcingv the cutting knives 28 through the rubber sheet Sti-which covers said dieplate. The presser roller 14 is returned to its starting positionby closing the valve 18 and opening the valve 17, to admit pressure fluid to the front end of the cylinder-11 while its rear end is exhausted, after which the net-work of surplus rubber is removed from between the openings 27 and cut from the sheet 36.

blanks, 43, 43, remaining upon the book leaf 42, and firmly held thereonby reason of the differential fluid vpressures .acting upon ,the faces of the. blanks, namely, atmospheric pressure upon their upper faces, and sub-` atmospheric pressure on their under facesl effected by the suction applied through the apertures 21, said blankspassing through the openings27-- when the die-plate isso raised.

The suction is then broken byreversingv the valve 24, which opens its inlet port,4 aft-er which the book may bel pulledfout.

from its supporting. frame, as shown in broken lines in Fig.y 2, to withdraw the filled leaf from the vplate 20 and permit it to fall onto .the board 40v or other. filled rllhe. die-plate is then raised 1 and laid in the tray 29, leaving the severed leaves thereon. The operation as described maybe repeated until the-book is .filled with blanks. AV book with blanks therein is shown in Fig. 6.

The cutting is both rapid and accurate, the dies beingk so placed as to avoid waste of material without requiring the attention of the operator to that matter, and manual handling of the blanks is avoided.

Modifications may be resorted to without departing from the scope of my invention and. I do notfwholly limitmyclaims tofthe exact procedure,nor to the specific form of apparatus, herein described.

I claim:

1. The method of cutting blanks from sheetanaterial whichcomprises placing the material upon a pervious liner, cutting blanks from said material, and then hold? ing said blanks upon said `liner by suction whiler removing the remainder of the material` therefrom. I

2. The method` of cutting blanks fromI sheet material which comprises placingvthe material uponya pervious liner, appl \jing suction to said material, through said liner, at certain points, cutting blanks ,from said material at the p'ointswheresuct-ionfis .applied, and ,then removingthe surplusrmaterial from said liner while retaining. the blanks thereon.

3. The method of cutting blanks from sheet material which comprises placing an apertured plate upon apervious liner, placing a sheet of material tobe cut, upon said plate,.cutting from said material such part as overlie's the aperture of` sa-id plate, and depositing the severed part, through said. aperture, upon the liner.

4. The method of cutting blanks .fromv sheetmaterial which comprises placing a hollowdie upon a fabric liner, placing' a sheet of material upon said die, forcing said diethrough said material, and then drawing the cut blank through said die and .reniovingthe blank upon said liner.

5. The method of cutting blanks from sheet materialwhich comprises placing an apertured die-plate upona fabric liner,plac ing/a strip of material upon. said vdie-plate, applying suction to draw the material` through the. dies and against said. liner, applying .pressure to force the dies through said material, and then removing -thecut parts upon said liner.l

6. Apparatus for cutting. blanks .frein sheet material, said apparatus comprising a die, apervious liner adapted. to be presented to they reverseside thereof, means 4for pressing material against said die tocut a blank therefrom, and means for drawing said blank through said die and onto said liner.

7. Apparatus for cutting blanks .from sheet material, said apparatus comprising .al die-plate having-therein; a pluralityof cutting members surrounding apertures in said plate, means for pressing material against said cutting members to cut blanks therefrom, a liner at the reverse side of said dieplate, and means for drawing said blanks through said apertures and onto said liner.

8. In apparatus for cutting blanks from sheet material, the combination of a plate having thereon a plurality of upraised cutting members surrounding apertures in said plate, a roller for pressing material against said cutting members to cut blanks therefrom, and means for drawing the cut blanks through said plate.

9. In apparatus for cutting blanks from sheet material, the combination of a hollow cutter, means for pressing a sheet of material thereagainst, and suction means mounted to draw the cut blank through the hollow cutter for stripping said cutter.

10. In apparatus for cutting blanks from sheet material, the combination of a hollow cutter, a roller for pressing a sheet of material thereagainst, and suction means mounted to draw the cut blank through the hollow cutter for stripping said cutter.

11. In apparatus for cutting blanks from sheet material, the combination of a foraminous support, a fabric liner thereon, an apertured cutter on said liner, means for pressing a sheet of material against said cutter to cut said material, and suction means operating through said support and liner to draw the material through said cutter onto said liner.

12. In apparatus for cutting blanks from sheet mate-rial, the combination of an apertured support, a liner thereon, an apertured die-plate hinged adjacent said support and adapted to be swung over onto said liner, a plurality of dies on said die-plate surrounding respective apertures therein, a roller adapted to press a sheet of stock against said dies to cut blanks therefrom, means for driving said roller, and means for applying suction to said stock, through said support, liner and die-plate, to draw said blanks through said dies.

13. In apparatus for cutting blanks from sheet material, the combination of an apertured plate, a stock book, means for supporting said stock book so that one of its leaves may lie upon said support, an apertured die-plate adapted to be laid upon said leaf, a die surrounding an aperture of said die-plate, means for pressing stock onto said die to cut a blank therefrom, and means for applying suction to said stock through said support, liner and die-plate.

14e. In apparatus for cutting blanks, the combination of a support, a die-moistening device adjacent said support, an apertured, hinged die-plate adapted to be swung alternately onto said support and said device, and a die surrounding the aperture of said die-plate in position to present its cutting edge to said moistening device.

15. The method of cutting blanks from sheet material which comprises die-cutting the material and free-ing the die-cut blanks by forcing the cut blank through the die by the use of differential uid pressure.

16. Apparatus for cutting blanks from sheet material, said apparatus comprising a die., means for forcing the stock against said die to cut a blank therefrom, and means for creating differential iiuid pressures on the respective faces of said blank to force it through the die.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 14; day of February, 1923.

FRANK J. MACDONALD. 

